Charlotte home and Democrat., 1887-06-03
Disastrous Fire.
UlSdSCTUUO THU
Thirteen hundred Horses burned to death.

Disastrous Fire.
Thirteen hundred Horses burned to DEATH
NEW YORK, May 27.-Flames broke
out at l.3O this morning in the south end
OF the Belt line stables. on Tenth avenue,
between Fifty-third and Fifty-fourth
streets. The building was entirely de.
stroyed, with fourteen hundred horses and
nearly all the cars in the building. The
flames were first seen by one o: the night
hands, who gave the alarm. The flames
spread rapidly, and soon completely en-
veloped the building in their folds. The
building was a fve-story building, and
covered a square block, reaching back to
Eleventh avenue. The upper stories
were occupied by repair shops and COM
bustible material, which blazed as soon as
touched by the fire. The offices were
situated in the southeast corner. They
were in flames 80 quickly that there was
no chance to save the books of the com
pany. In the stables were over 400
horses and several hundred cars. Only
100 horses and 2 cars were saved. The
rest were all burned up. At a. IN. the
walls of the building fell in with terrible
crash, sending millions of sparks and
blazing pieces OF wood high in the air.
The heat from the flaming building was
so great that several fremen and two
policemen were prostrated. AT Las a. m.
the flames, aided by strong, high wind
which was prevailing, had leaped across
the wide avenue and communicated to the
whole block on the east side between
Fifty y-third and Fifty fourth streets. The
block was composed of six-story tenement
houses and coal yard. The terror
stricken tenants poured out of the build
ing like a swarm of bees, praying, fighting
and cursing by turns.
The scene of terror was indescribable.
The buildings burned rapidly, though the
fronts facing the avenue were of brown
stone By $50 they we're completely
gutted. The flames spread to the entire
square over to Ninth avenue.
AT 2.3O a. m. the next block below had
caught on fire and was blazing fercely.
The streets in the vicinity for blocks
away were filled with frightened, crying
and woe-stricken tenants, fleeing from the
ravages of the flames The fire attracted
thousands of awestruck spectators.
The tenement houses were thickly peo-
pied. Every floor had from four TO FIVE
families. AL were poor people who will
| lose all their property.
The loss is estimated at $l,325, 600.
The fire ragged from halfpast one till day
| break. The sun rose upon scene of desc
lation but with the tired firemen masters
of the situation. The bodies of twelve
| hundred horses that bad been smothered
or burned alive were roasting in the ruins
of the stables.
Any number Of people, including fire.
men and policemen, were prostrated by
the consuming heat. Men, women and
children wandered aimlessly over the
ruins of their wrecked homes, bereft of
their all aud bewildered at the sudden
and crushing blow. Their losses, though
| mostly insignificant in amount, were the
accumulation of lifetime. The insur-
| ance is less than 100000. The street
car company carried $4,000 insurance.
W- The heavy losses sustained by diff
ferent bodies of troops during the late
civil war will never be accurately known
Every now and then some new fact of tn st
nature is being brought to light, aud in
order that the extraordinary mortality in
certain companies may be perpetuated in
history the survivors should now give it
publicity while they still live. The editor
vi LuO III iuSWOIl6l AuufeAs
at WILMINGTON on the 10th May, briefly
referred to the very heavy losses sustained
| by certain troops il certain battles of the
late war, and among the many letters
since received by him relative thereto is
one from Mr. James D. Moore, Of Gastonia,
N. C.. who states that Co. + 2sth N. G..
Regiment went into the first days fight
at Gettysburg with 81 men and lost SO
killed and wounded! This company was
from Caldwell county, and Mr. Moore
himself was one of the wounded members
! of il. Pittsboro Record
sB~ Mrs Hetty Green, they say, the
| woman with many millions, the richest
| woman in America. has hauled up G. P.
| Huntington, the railroad king, with a
| round turn. She demands that he either
| let go his hold on the Houston 81 Texas
Central Railroad or else pay her a grand
sum to leave him TO his purposes She
| 0WnR 81 Ono 000 of tho roads bonds ord